Whenever a new season of an existing show launches on Netflix, the creators add a recap at the beginning to help everyone remember what happened last time. The summary usually lasts two to three minutes, but, often, it leaves you more confused than enlightened.
“Uhhh, what was that?” “Do you feel caught up to speed?” “Nu-uh, you?” “Nope.” Inevitably, the stranded turn to Youtube, where a plethora of recaps awaits. My fiancée and I watched one for the first season of The Recruit yesterday, and it taught us all we needed to know in seven minutes.
“Look at that,” I said. “How can Netflix fail to tell us much of anything in three minutes when it takes a stranger on the internet just twice as long to tell us everything?” Eventually, I figured out why: “Narration!” I exclaimed, adding one extra jump scare to my partner’s TV night.
When Netflix compiles their recaps, all they do is string together scenes of the past season. Whatever dialogue might be in there, it can never be enough to fill all the gaps. Recappers on Youtube, meanwhile, narrate their videos. They give you the key visuals, but they also summarize the entire story in a well-drafted script—and that’s why it works.
“Show, don’t tell” is a common principle in writing, advertising, and the creative arts. Of course it’s better to involve the audience than to merely rattle off a list of supposedly important events. But, like everything, sometimes, showing just doesn’t work. That’s why channels like the Man of Recaps exist: There’s a difference between talking and talking about.
If you’re in the story, it’s okay for it to unfold one day at a time. Meandering is part of the journey. But when you learn about someone else’s journey up to now, you need the pillars holding the house together, and you need them fast.
It’s normal to forget that only you know everything you know. It’s okay to be worried about repeating yourself. When you’re talking about something, however, shelve that worry. Dig deep, recall what it was like to be a beginner, and then start from the beginning indeed.
A good recap is just as generous as a story worth recapping. Know which one you’re sharing so we may all press play at the same time.